Method of removing snow from a line of travel, or an area, and a mechanism to carry out the same



| WYLIE 2,802,286

Aug. 13, 1957 METHOD OF REMOVING SNOW FROM A LINE OF TRAVEL, OR AN AREA,AND A MECHANISM TO CARRY OUT THE SAME 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 7,1952 I INVENTOR Laurence h /g///e 12y Q ,a

ATTORNEYS Aug. 13, 1957 L. WYLIE 2,802,286

METHOD OF REMOVING snow FROM A LINE OF TRAVEL. 0R AN AREA, AND AMECHANISM TO CARRY OUT THE SAME Filed Jan. 7, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l Il fig, /2

22 INVENTOR.

'4 alliance hfq/A? United States Patent Laurence Wylie, Seattle, Wash.

Application January 7, 1952, Serial No. 265,256

16 Claims. (Cl. 37-19) My invention relates to a method of removing snowfrom; a line of travel, or an area, and a mechanism to carry out thesame.

More particularly, my invention relates to theme of air moving at highvelocity either at atmospheric temperature or heated, in the removal ofsnow from railroads, highways or air fields and the like.

The difficulties of removing snow from such locations 28.1'6 largelyinherent in the nature and character of snow itself.- When it firstfalls it may be light and porous but due to great volume presents greatweight of water in the solid form. At another time, it may be wet andadhere, :and after reaching the ground it may pack so as to become:dense, and this may be further complicated by freezing weather whichsolidifies the surface portion or the whole mass into crust or ice.Thus, snow removing equipment :must meet many complex and exactingrequirements extending over a wide range.

Among these requirements, one of the outstanding difficulties inmaintaining transportation schedules is that EOE removing the snow withsufficient speed. In main- .taining schedules, such expeditious removalcannot be too highly emphasized. In this requirement are found thefoundations for the steps constituting the method and the-structuralelements of my invention.

Particularly great difiiculty and expense have been involved in keepingrailroad tracks clear of snow so that :train schedules can be uniformlymaintained. Positive :reliability of train schedules is fundamentallyimportant, ;not,only economically, but for safety and security of lifeitself, individually and nationally.

The operating of trains off-schedule presents serious ;problems andhazards not normally encountered. The :slowness of operation of snowremoving equipment of present design and construction, particularly whenthere :is a heavy fall of snow, results in great delay in traflicmovement, serious inconvenience, and great expense both direct andindirect. Business arrangements are interrupted by reason of failure ofpassengers to maintain schedules. Those requiring hospitalization andmedical careof experts are subjected to great risks due to lack of.transportation. There has been little or no critical advance in actualoperation in the removal of snow from railroad tracks in the last fortyyears. Substantially, the only practical change in actual operation hasbeen an Zincrease of engine power as applied to driving the rotary snowplow and other snow removal equipment which is of the same generaldesign of the last many years. Many expensive attempts have been made toimprove the equipment but, when actually tried in practical operation,have proven deficient.

By way of emphasis, let it be herein early noted that among the severaloutstanding features characterizing my invention, is the following: Thebody of snow immediately ahead of the leading edge of the device of myinvention is, first, .air conditioned, i. e., air impregnated, airdisengaged from the ground, and air momentarily 2,802,286 Patented Aug.13, 1957 fioatingly suspended; second, elevated on the mold board, andthird, subjected to a high velocity current of air in discharging thesnow free of the equipment eitherin the form of snow or vapor--allwith'ou't confining or conductin the snow through restricted channels orengage? ment with rotating or moving, separate structural elei ments ofthe device.

duced. I

The basic type of snow removal equipment now in principal use by theAmerican railroads, and particularly in the mountainous sections wheregreatest snowfall occurs and conditions of removal are most severe,consists of a plow of a type generally described as a rotary snow plow.With regard to the speed of operation of this type of plow, thefollowing statement appears in the last issue of the Railway Engineeringand Maintenance Encyclo pedia. (Page 525, published for the Year 1948 bySimmons-Boardman Publishing Co.) v

The operating speed of a rotary snow plow is governed by the ability ofthe rotating blades to dispose of the snow. In very heavy snow drifts,the speed may be as low as one mile per hour or less. It is importantthat the machine should not be pushed into the snow bank faster than theblades can handle the snow otherwise the blades may be damaged.

A primary object of my invention is to provide a method of removing snowfrom traflic lines and areas, and apparatus to carry out the same whichwill overcome the many difficulties inherent in the operation. Myinvention is characterized by its speedof operation in handling the snowand in moving over the track-way itself. Its action is a positiveremoval of snow to either or both sides of the embankment of therailroador highway, or as a vapor to be wind carried aside, and itsoperation is characterized by the economy with which it accomplishes itsresults. Moreover, the snow, when removed as such, is disposed of at awide distance from the tracks so that the danger of being drifted orfalling in sliding back upon the track is greatly lessened. Also, it.isa primary object of my invention to provide for discharging the snowfrom a line of travel or area as an air field by sweeping it laterallyby blowing it with air under high pressure when the snow is not verydeep and is light or very porous.

' For clearness of description and illustration, I will set forth myinvention, more particularly as applied to a railroad mounting means orcarriage. The importance of maintaining train schedules is not only amatter of maintaining the convenience of appointments, but is directedtotraflic safety, economy, and national security. The extr'ernelynumerous delays to railroad trafiic due to snow conditions of recentyears in the face of increasedtrain speed schedules and increasedtraffic has created a problem of maintaining train schedules of mostserious proportions. The enormous expenditures to railroads running intomillions of dollars incident to such delays, and the great expense andinconvenienceto the public, have emphasized how greatly is the need forimprovement in the operation of snow removal. Of course, the snowconditions are particularly bad in the mountain sections, and thereforethese isolated sections constitute especially weak links in thetranscontinental traiiic.

One railroad authority has written:

Animportant adverse factor in recent years has been the severity of thewinters. The direct charge against removing snow, ice and sand in 1949was $1,600,000, four times greater than in 1944 when the winter was mildand labor costs less.

This was for one railroad in one year, and it is to be noted that suchexpenditure is not characterized byany The cross-sectional area of thestream of high pressure air leaving the device is not re" permanentconstructive value. Such expense is a continuing annual loss. Thesefigures are greatly increased in some instances. For a mere three monthsperiod of one railroad, the increased cost of operation due to snowamounted to $707,595. Moreover, the agricultural economy .of the countryhas been greatly endangered during the severe winter months. Inextremity, the Army has been called upon to fly food to cattle which arecaught in isolated sections by reason of snow storms. Hence, theimportance of the removal of snow for all railroads, air fields andautomobile trafic.

While attempts have been made to overcome the difficulties in removingthe snow, such attempts have been ineffectual in that in spite of greatcosts involved, only comparatively very slow operation has beenpossible, and in sections where the snowfall is particularly heavy, theseriousness of such slow operation is clearly manifest in thatpromptness of resuming normal traffic over extended trackage is afundamental requirement. In other words, there is a time element whichis not satisfied by snow removing equipment now commonly used.Furthermore, such delay in snow removal involves an increasingdifliculty in its removal because the snow becomes more and more compactand as its density increases, further complications due to freezingbecome involved. Thus, at least two reasons require promptness ofremoval of the snow(a) to maintain schedules, and (b) to voidcomplications due to packing of the snow and subjecting it to changedweather conditions such as increased freezing or very low temperatures.

The meaning of slow operation is apparent from the following:

The removing of snow from railroad tracks requires great power and,according to present practice, a large number of rotary units. Somefigures as to how much power may be required for this type of work areof interest, particularly for snow conditions in the Cascade Mountainsin the State of Washington, where the snow may fall at the rate of morethan one foot per hour for extended periods. Assuming that snow two feetdeep is to be removed from the track for a width of ten feet by use ofthe commonly employed rotary snow plow, this snow will have to be raisedabout ten feet above the top of the rail and should be discharged fromthe vehicle at the rate of about forty feet per second. The weight ofthis snow will be 500,000 pounds per mile and at five miles per hour therotor will have to handle 2,500,000 pounds of snow per hour. To performthis work will require about three hundred horsepower at the rotor foreach five miles per hour. If it is desired to operate the rotary plow attwenty miles per hour (which is probably much faster than a rotoroperating at 150 RJP. M. will handle the snow), then at least1200horsepower measured at the rotor would be required. As-

1. Section of lineA to B over summit of Cascade Mountains, distance 40miles;

2. Snowfallone foot per hour for eight hours;

3. Total weight of snowfall per hour on a strip ten feet wide, fortymiles long at 250,000 pounds per mile equals 10,000,000 pounds;

. Total weight of snowfall in eight hours equals 80,000,000 pounds;

5. Maximum quantity which can be handled by one rotary snow plow (300horsepower at rotor) at five miles per hour equals 2,500,000 pounds;

6. Number of rotary hours required to clear this snow from tracks equals32 hours. This assumes continuous operation of rotary snow plow but dueto dispatching, time required for taking water, meeting trains, workequipment, etc., about 64 hours would be required for one rotary to movethis snow. To clear the track in eight hours (in other words, keep thetrack clear) would, on the above basis, require eight rotary snow plows,not including work clearing yards, siding, etc.

The above facts concretely illustrate the great cost involved inremoving snow and also illustrates the severity of the problem involvedin the requirement as to horsepower and speed of operation.

A primary purpose of my invention is to overcome all of these objectionsand to meet these requirements by providing a new method and a newapparatus for removing the snow characterized by its speed of operation,CifiCiCHCY and economy of construction.

In brief and in general, and therefore incompletely stated, my inventionincludes the following:

It involves the employment of currents of air moving at high velocity.This current of air is discharged through openings located near theleading edge of a mold board extending transversely of the track in theform of a scoop. The air may be discharged from these openings directlyahead and parallel to the ground so that it undercuts the snowimmediately ahead and impregnates or aerates it with air and maymomentarily air-fioatingly suspend the snow so that as the advancingmold board mounted on the front end of a rail truck or carriage engagesthe snow it is easily elevated up the inclined mold board. In the courseof said elevating it is caused to pass over other openings from whichthere is issuing high velocity currents of air, which currents of airhave a controlled, adjustable predetermined direction. Thus, the streamof snow up the mold board is discharged to one side or to both sides ofthe trackway either in the form of snow or in the form of vapor withoutthe said snow stream being restricted in confined channels which slowdown its movement, or without engagement with separate rotating ormoving structural elements of the device. Also, my invention providescertain forms of the invention to be used in those cases where snowfalls on areas, especially as on air fields, for blasts of air to belaterally directed to sweep, as it were, the snow to one side when it isporous and not very deep.

In the above, the phrase without the said snow stream being restricted,as well as the term unconfined, is to be construed as meaning that thestream of snow is not appreciably impeded in its speed by reason ofconfining channels, that is, the stream of air or snow is not reducedcross-sectionally considered as it leaves the face of the equipment. Theforward portion of the mold board of my device does have mounted lateralwing members which determine the lateral boundaries of the snow streambut which do not confine and restrict the upward and outward movement ofthe snow so as to appreciably" slow down the stream. Serious objectionsobtain to any bringing of the snow to a restricting and impeding channelor passageway or to engagement with rotating blades or moving parts asall such operate to slow down the snow removal due to inherent characteristics. Such high velocity current of air may be at atmospherictemperature or may be of highly heated temperature so that the snow maybe either displaced as snow when atmospheric temperature is employed, oras vapor when high temperatured currents of air are employed. Theproviding of a device which so employs high velocity currents of air isa primary object of my invention.

As respects speed of operation, it is an object of my invention toremove the snow at a sufficiently high rate which will permit theequipment to travel at a fair rate of speed, in general, such as twentyto fifty miles per hour depending upon the depth of the snow involved,severity of the weather and character of track being traversed.

A principal object of my invention is to clear snow from the trackquickly rather than to permit a heavy accumulation of snow on the trackswhich can then only be removed with great difficulty and attendant delayand an interruption of train schedules.

in short, a primai-y object of my invention is to provide for the trainsto operate on the block system. The operating trains may follow closelyupon the snow removal equipment without excessive delay to the train.The present operation involves the snow equipment to move on ahead of agiven train by several hours as it operates at extremely slow speed sothat it proceeds in advance by a considerable period of time and thisintroduces the ditficulty of falling snow accumulating after the passageof the snow plow so that the following train does not have a cleantrack. In short, a slow speed snow removal equipment and a fast traincannot be synchronized.

It is also a primary object of my invention to free the switch parts ofthe track and flanges of the track rails of snow' and ice simultaneouslywith the removal of the snow.

While my invention is designed primarily for the removal of snow,nevertheless it may be used for the removal of loose drifted sand, dirtor loose material.

The foregoing general objects of my invention, together with othersinherent in the same, are attained by the device illustrated in thefollowing drawings throughout which like reference numerals indicatelike parts:

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation (partly diagrammatic) of a railroadcarriage or truck provided with the snow-removing plow of my invention,parts being shown in dotted lines and parts being broken away;

Fig. '2 is a view of the same partly in plan and partly in section takensubstantially on broken line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation view of the same;

Fig. 4 is a view in cross-sectionof the revolvable ring mountinginclined louvers and adjusting means, taken substantially on broken line44 of Fig. 2, and on a larger scale than Fig. 2; i

Fig. 5 is a detached view in cross-section of the center board and meansfor operating same;

Fig. 6 is a view in elevation of the telescopically mounted movablehood;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the leading edgeportion of the scoop member of the mold board;

' Fig. 8 is a plan view of the flange plow for cleaning the railflange-ways and removing snow from between .the rails and under themoving machine;

Fig. 9 is a view in front elevation of said flange plow and means forcontrollably adjustably positioning the .same;

Fig. 10 is a view in side elevation of said flange plow :and said meansfor controllably adjusting the same;

Fig. 11 is a view in side elevation (partly diagrammatic) of a modifiedform of my device, parts being shown in dotted line and parts beingbroken away;

Fig. 12 is a plan view of said modified form;

Fig. form;

Fig. 14 is an enlarged view, partly in section and partly in elevation,of the transversely disposed shutters or louvers and means forcontrollably adjusting the angle of the same;

Fig. 15 is a fragmentary view of a modified form of the invention partlyin plan and partly in section of the front portion of the scoop memberof the mold board;

Fig. 16 is a fragmentary view of another modified form of the invention,partly in plan and partly in section, of the front portion of the scoopmember of the mold board;

Fig. 17 is a fragmentary view taken substantially on broken line 1717 ofFig. 16;

Fig. 18 is a fragmentary view of still another modified form of theinvention, partly in plan and partly in section, of the front portion ofthe scoop member of the mold board;

Fig. 19 is a sectional view taken substantially on broken line 19-19 ofFig. 18;

13 is a front elevational view of said modified Fig. 20 is a schematicview in side elevation of a modified form of the scoop member withoutany plow portion;

Fig. 21.is an isometric view ofthe modified form shown in Fig. 20; and

Fig. 22is a schematic view of a modified form of the arrangement of theopenings in the scoop member.

A railroad car truck or carriage 30 is driven over the tracks 31 on ties32 by means of a locomotive or dieselpowered locomotive which may beconnected to carriage 30 by means of drawbar 33. On the front end ofsaid carriage is a mold board 34 consisting of a scoop portion 35 and anupper plow portion 36. The scoop portion forms an upwardly inclinedplane proceeding rearwardly of the leading edge (see Fig. 1). This scoopportion extends directly transversely of the axis of the device; thatis, it has no plow dividing form which plow mechanism is disposed in theupper portion 36 of the mold board 34. Rearwardly of and underneath thescoop portion 35 is a compressed air chamber 37. The scoop portion 35has adjustable upright wing members 38 and 39 laterally disposed, saidwing members being pivoted at centers 40 and 41 respectively, and havingflanged bottom or floor members 38a and 39a respectively, which extendthe face of scoop 35 and prevent wedging of solids be tween said wingsand scoop. The said wing members function to cut a channel in the snowwider than the width of the mold board proper so as to provide foradditional clearing width of snow on curves or at other points as may bedesired. These wing members may be adjusted for a given operation by aircylinder means 42 and 43. The leading edge portion of said scoop (seeenlarged view Fig. 7) is provided with a cutting edge 44 above which isa series of ports 45 communicating with the compressed air chamber 37.This leading edge is also preferably provided with a shoe member 46which may ride on the rail 31 when a particularly heavy load is imposedupon the leading edge but which normally is free of contact with saidrail.

Preferably a device is provided for varying the area of the openings 45through which air discharges from the nose of the scoop member 35. Onedevice which may be used for this purpose (see Fig. 7) comprises alongitudinally adjustable damper-type valve or slide 53 having notches54 therein for selective registration or non-registration with theopenings 45. Means are provided for adjusting the slide 53. One suchadjusting means may be in the form of an adjusting screw 55, see Fig. I1, lower right, which may be reached through an opening in the wingmember 39.

In the upper portion of the scoop member 35 are openings 47 and 48 (seealso Fig. 4). In each of these openings is revolvably mounted a ring 49of the following character: A ring 49 is provided with louver boards 50disposed at an angle to direct the pressure of air from the compressedair chamber 37 at a desired upward angle with respect to the surface ofthe scoop member 35.

As operating means to revolve said ring 49 .a gear ring 51 is secured tosaid ring 49 and meshes with a worm pinion 52. The pinion 52 may beactuated by a hand wrench or crank 52a (see Fig. 2).

A ring member 49 is located in each of the openings 47 and 48. Thelouver boards 50 leave openings 57 which may connect directly with thecompressed air chamber 37.

In some instances, it may be desirable to restrict or close the openingsbetween the louver boards 50 in order to increase the air pressure forthe nose jets or other'openings. One way to accomplish this is toconnect the end portions of each louver member 50 with the ring 49 bypivot members 39 and to provide each louver member 50 with a downwardlyextending rigidly attached lever 27. The lower end portion of each lever27 is connected by a pivot 28 with a longitudinally movable operatingbar 26. One means which may be used to longitudinally move the bar 26and thus open and close or adjust the louver boards 50 comprises apneumatic cylinder 25 having therein a piston 24 connected by a pistonrod 23 with a bracket arm 22 which is rigid with the bar 26. The end ofthe cylinder 25 remote from the bracket arm 22 is connected by a pivot21 with a bracket which is rigid with the ring 49. The cylinder movesrotatively with the ring 49 and has fluid pressure conduits 19 connectedtherewith.

The plow member 36 of the mold board 34 divides at the axis of themachine and its surface curves rearwardly forming plow members 58 and59. These throw laterally any snow that may escape the blowing action ofthe air current issuing from openings 47 and 43. A center board 60 ismounted on a post 61 which is pivotly mounted and is provided with anextension 62 (see Fig. 5) which is engaged by a piston rod 63 of apiston 64 disposed in a pneumatic cylinder 65. Said cylinder hasconduits 66 and 67 connected with a source of compressed air. Thiscenter board may be mounted in the axis of the machine and may bedisposed to swing laterally of said axis in order to direct the snowascending the mold board 34 to either right or left of the machine asmay be required when the trackway is located on a shelf of a steep slopeso that the snow will be directed on the side of the rightof-way slopingdownwardly from the track. More fully stated, the center board 60functions to discharge such portion of the snow not discharged bycompressed air to the right or left of the device and thus makes theplow doubly efficient, as said board 60 renders the plow capable ofdischarging the snow wholly to one side or the other. Or when the centerboard 60 is axially disposed the plow members 58 and 59 may dischargethe snow both to the right and left in the normal operation of said plowmember. A retractable hood 70 extends laterally of the center board 60and provides for deflecting the snow to the plow members 58 and 59 sothat the snow will be deflected to one side. Such hood 70 functions toprotect trolley wires or other overhead structures, The retractable hoodis preferably telescopically mounted in the top portion 71 of thecarriage (see Fig. 6). Said hood may be operated by a pneumaticallymounted piston 72 disposed in a pneumatic cylinder 73 which cylindercommunicates with a source of pneumatic pressure by conduits 74 and 75.Instances when it would be desirable to prevent the snow from risingstraight up the mold board would be when the device is used overtrackways having trolley lines or overhead wires above the tracks orwhen the device is operated over tracks located on a city street.

ln the above, reference has been made to pneumatic cylinders such as 65,73, and so forth. These and all such cylinders may be preferablyconnected to a source of pneumatic pressure provided in the locomotiveor diesel engine means which is connected to drawbar 33 when the plow isin use. in other words, it is connected to a standard air line of thelocomotive but, of course, such standard air compressor may be installedon the snow plow carriage 30 itself.

A customary flanger plow of conventional design may be disposed beneaththe carriage 30 in order to remove the snow beneath the level of therails 31 (see Figs. 1, 8, 9 and 10). This plow is mounted on guidemembers 81 and S2 and may be controlled in its plane of operation by apiston cylinder means 83.

In Figs. 1 and 2, a driven blower or turbo compressor 85 is driven byengine 86. The turbo compressor or blower is standard equipment inextensive use and forms no part of this invention except as a source ofcompressed air. Parenthetically, of course it will be understood that onelectrified railroads and, in general, where electric traction isemployed, electric motors may be used as prime movers to drive themechanism herein disclosed. By such conventional equipment, pressures upto thirty pounds or more pcr square inch can be obtained for the purposeof removing snow with the plow as herein disclosed. However, in general,and under ordinary conditions herein involved, a sustained pressure oftwo to six pounds per square inch would provide air at sufficientvelocity to give effective results. The compressed air from compressor35 is discharged directly into the conduit 87 which leads directly intochamber 37 beneath the scoop member 35. Conduits 88 lead from suchconduit 87 to clear the snow from the flanges of the rail 31. Also,conduits 89 lead from said conduit 87 to direct the air against theflanges of said rails 31 to clean the same. The heated blast from noseopenings 45 and flanger ducts 88 and 89 also serves to thaw out railswitches over which the equipment could be caused to run slowly topermit of the necessary thawing of the snow and ice which has lodged insuch portion of the trackway.

To increase the temperature of the compressed air after passage throughcompressor 85, heat from a flame of an auxiliary fuel burner 8511 may beinjected into chamber 37 preferably near the point of discharge fromblower or compressor 85. Such heat will expand the air, giving morevolume, pressure, and velocity to the air and will assist in keeping thedevice free of snow and ice and in removing ice from said flanges andswitches.

The inlet 90, Fig. 1, conducts air from chamber 91 to the turbocompressor 85. The inlet to chamber 91 is preferably provided withlouvers 92. These serve not only to lessen the amount of snow that wouldbe taken in by the current of air passing to chamber 91 but also serveas protection means for preventing accidents to operators.

The exhaust from the diesel engine 86 may be conducted by pipe 93 toinlet and thereby employed to heat the compressed air.

With the turbo compressor or blower not only is a stream of air suppliedunder relatively high pressure but also a stream of air at increasedtemperature due to compression.

A modified form, Figs. 1] and 12, of my invention is shown wherein amold board has scoop member 101 and plow member 102 somewhat similar tothat shown in Fig. 1. However, in this modified form, an opening 103 isprovided transversely of the upper portion of the scoop member and thisalso is provided with two sets of shutters 104 and 104' (both being ofsimilar construction) which are adjustably mounted on links 105 and 1.05mounted on bars 106 and 106' which are connected to pneumatic cylindermeans 107 and 107. The scoop member 101 has lateral wing members 108 and109 pivoted on hinges 110 and 111, said wing members being controllablyoperated by pneumatic piston and cylinder means 112 and 113 respectivelybeneath the scoop member 100.

In Figs. 11 and 12, a standard turbo-jet engine 114 is diagrammaticallyshown. This may be of any standard make. Such an engine as manufacturedby General Electric Company is shown as Model L4? in National GeographicMagazine, volume 98, No. 3, page 314, issued February 1950. Likewise,turbo-jet engines of similar principle are manufactured by theWestinghouse Company and other concerns.

The plow member 102 of the mold board 100, in Figs. 11 and 12, isdisposed at a more upright angle than the scoop member 101 and thediverging portions of the plow serve to deflect the snow right and leftof the trackway; that is, such portions of the snow as may notpreviously have been directed to one side or the other of the trackwayby the shutter or louver board means 104 and 104' (see Fig. 14). The airinlet chamber 115 provides for the admission of air to the jet engine114. The opening 116 to chamber 115 is preferably provided with louverboards 116' which also act as a grating for the opening 116 therebyobviating danger to operators who might inadvertently fall or be drawninto the chamber 115. The outlet for the gases developed in the jetengine 114 are led into the outlet chamber 117 which leads to theopening 103. Also leading from chamber 117 is the conduit 118 whichleads to the openings 119 in the leading edge portion 120 havingknifemember 121. Leading from conduit 118 are lateral conduits 122, 123, 124and 125 which conduct portions of the air stream to the flanges of thetrack 31 whereby the flanges of the trackway as well as switch parts,are freed of snow. Likewise, conduits 126 lead from chamber 117 to thetrackway to further clear the track flanges of snow. A headlight 127 maybe mounted on the upper portion of the plow member 102. v

The standard flanger plow 128, similar to the flanger plow 80 shown inFigs.- 1, 8, 9 and .10, is provided heneath the engine 114 for removingsnowbetween the trackways. In this modified form of the plow, theshutters 104 may be disposed at such angle as may be desired to deflectthe blast of air from outlet chamber 117 at such angle as to deflect thesnow to the right or left of the trackway or to divide the stream ofsnow ascending the mold board 100 to deflect the same right and left ofthe trackway. I

In the modified form shown in Fig. 15, a scoop portion 140 of the moldboard is provided on its front edge portion with two rotary air controlvalves 141 and 142 having an air passageway 143 and 144, respectively.Air passageways 143 and 144 communicate withan air chamher 139 withinscoop member 140 corresponding substantially to chamber 37 of Figs. 1and 2. 7

Valve 141 may be. operated by an air cylinder 145 through piston rod 146as one convenient form of actuating means, while valve 142 may beoperated by an air cylinder, 147 through piston rod 148 as oneconvenient form of actuating means. Air passageways 149 across on theleading edge portion of the scoop member permit the air to be directedstraight ahead of the device. Valves 141 and 142 may be directed atvarious angles, for example, forwardly and laterally, and thereby alight snow may be swept forwardly and laterally of the machine inclearing an area such'as an air field. The rotary valves 141 and 142 maybe used in connection with the louvers 50 of Fig. 2 or without saidlouvers.

In the still further modified form of Figs. 16 and 17, a scoop portion150, substantially similar in all respects to the scoop member 35 ofFigs. 1 and 2, is provided with an angularly movable air dischargenozzle 151. This is in addition to the louvers 162 and 163 and to theair outlets 45. This nozzle is operated by'a cylinder 152 through pistonrod 153. The nozzle 151 operates to discharge the snow laterally as wellas forwardly of the device in clearing a field such as an air field. Thenozzle 151 communicateswith the air chamber 154 inside of the scoop 150.

In the still further modified form of the invention shown in Figs. 18and 19, scoop member or portion 155 is provided with a nozzle portion156 which is'angularly movable so that it may direct the entire blast ofair either forwardly or at a sidewise angle to the right or left side.Nose portion 156 is pivotly mounted onpivot 157 and is actuated bycylinder 158'through piston rod 159 as one convenient form of actuatingmeans. In the leading edge portion of thenose'are ports 160 throughwhich the air under high pressure is discharged. The nose member 156communicates with chamber 161 in scoop member 155 p p The modified formsare characterizedrby the capacity to direct the air blasts eitherforwardly or laterally of the longitudinal axis of the device.

In the modified form shown in Figs. and 21, a mold board is in the formof a scoop member 170 which may be provided without any plowconstruction adjacent its upper portion. In other words, it is a scoopmember from its leading edge portion to its rear edge portion. That is,it extends at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the machinethroughout its length. Said scoop member functions to lift the snow andcause it to move up the inclined face of the mold board or scoop member170.

It is preferably provided with a plurality of air openings '171, 172,173 and 174. It is also preferably provided with adjustable hingemounted lateral air current deflecting vanes 175 and 176 and also it ispreferably provided with a hinge mounted medial air deflecting vane177.. Such deflecting means forms a simple and convenient; means ofadjustably governing and directing the high velocity current or streamof air from said openings.

The deflector members or vanes 175, 176 and 177 may beprovided withlocking means as follows: A rod 178 connects all three members by beinghingedly secured to their top portions. A bar 179 with notchesthroughout its length is revolvably mounted on fixed frame 180 of theplow so that it may engagedeflecting vane 177 by one of its severalnotches in locking the vanes in a desired angular position. The abovedescribes one convenient form of manually operated locking means. Ifdesired, adjustably controlled louver boards as shown in other formsherein may be provided in said openings as optional means forcontrolling the direction of the stream or blasts of air.

At this point, it is desired to direct attention to the fact thatspecific construction shown in one form of the invention may besubstituted in other forms of the invention. For example, the adjustablelouver board construction of Fig. 4 may be embodied in the openings 171,172, 173 and 174. Likewise, in Fig. 20 the nose portion of the scoopmember 170 may or may not be provided with the ports 45 of Figs. 1 and2.

The construction of Figs. 20 and 21 is characterized by its simplicityand economy of fabrication and yet it embodies the functional feature ofmeans for lifting the snow and applying to the snow while so lifted ablast or stream of high pressure air which may be controlled as to itsdirection in directly discharging the snow in a predetermined directionand at the same time such stream of air performs its function in anunconfined manner; that is, the cross sectional area of the stream isnot reduced. Throughout all the forms of my invention, it ischaracterized by this feature of having the stream orcurrent of highpressure air unconfined; that is, unreduced in cross-sectional area asit moves away from the face of the mold board or scoop member inattaining maximum efficiency for the invention. 7

In the modified form of my invention shown in Fig. 22, the air dischargeopenings and 191 in the scoop member 192 may be disposed in the form ofa cross so that the body of snow being elevated on the scoop member 192may be engaged by'a high velocity air current impinging thereon as thesnow rises on said scoop 192. These openings are preferably providedwith louver boards 193 which may be adjustably controlled as herein setforth for the other forms.

Mode of operation The snow is first undercut by the force of highvelocity air issuing from openings 45. The snow is thus released ordetached from the ground and as the air pressure builds up under thesnow the mass of snow immediately in front of the snow plow becomesaerated or impregnated with air and becomes more porous. Thus the snow,so air conditioned, isreadily lifted and carried away or caused to flowup the incline of the scoop member 35 of the mold board 34. Which ofthese courses will be followed by the snow will depend, in general, uponthe depth and character of the snow and the speed of forward travel ofthe plow. As soon as the snow reaches openings 47 and 48, it receivesthe blast of high velocity air which is directed upwardly andsimultaneously to the right orleft or to both right and left. The snowplow member 36 of the mold board 34 tends to shove the snow notpreviously blown clear to either side of the trackway. In deep snow,most of the snow will be discharged right and left of the trackway or tothe right or to the left or straight up by the blast of air. In thelatter instance the, wind may carry it to one side or the other. Thisdirecting of the snow blast is determined by the adjustment of thelouvers. With the wind blowing, it is manifest that the snow may becarried a long distance from the trackway before it is deposited andthus danger of its being drifted back upon the track is minimized. Ifany portion of the snow is not thus disposed of by the blasts ofcompressed air, the plow member will discharge the same to the right andleft.

i It is manifest that the snow has a free course and an unconfined orsubstantially unchanneled course up the mold board and is dischargedwithout first being impinged upon any rotary mechanism or through anyconfined channels or any structural element separately movable. It isthis free and unconfined treatment of the snow in discharging it fromthe line of travel that in large measure provides for the great capacityand speed and efficiency of snow removing by my invention.

Since the snow is aerated or air conditioned in the first place, it issubstantially broken up and put in condition to be blown by the blast ofcompressed air issuing from the machine as well as to be carried away bythe wind, if any. While the main body of the snow is being thusdischarged above the equipment, the flanges of the rails are beingcleaned by the blast directed and caused to impinge upon the railflanges. In previous forms of equipment involving channeling of the snowinto conduits in the act of discharging or channeling into compartmentsthere to be melted, inherently there is a lowering of elficiency and aslowing of operation, because the capacity for high speed operationcannot be provided by such mechanism. In contrast with all sucharrangements, my invention is characterized by the unconfined flow ofthe snow stream, the snow having been released from its contact with theground and being caused to be buoyant as it were by being aerated andthen immediately caused to slide up the incline of the scoop member ofthe advancing plow where it meets the blast of the high velocity airstream which further drives the snow as an open unconfined stream in apredetermined direction. This direction when the trackway is on theshelf of a mountain side would of course be down the slope in order todispose of the snow where it would not drift back upon the track.

Under certain circumstances, as where there is a light fall of new snow,the snow may be entirely discharged free from the line of travel by theblast of air from the nose ports 45 without reaching the upper part ofmold board or plow 36. On the other hand, during severe winter weathersnow in the high mountain passes traversed by the railroads and by thehighways, often reaches a depth of ten or twelve feet. As the snow iscleared from the railroad tracks or highways, it is piled up along theroute of travel and the depth adjacent to the tracks or roadway may befifteen or twenty feet. With such conditions, a snow plow, to beeffective, must be able to raise the snow to considerable height inorder to clear the high bank of snow resulting from clearing of previoussnowfall. Obviously the pusher type of snow plow which would beeffective for clearing a path in snow one or two feet deep is whollyunsuited and ineffective for clearing a roadway or area where the snowmust be lifted to considerable height and thrown to the right or leftside.

The device disclosed herein will throw snow to any reasonable height, orto any angle with respect to the line of travel, and do this efficientlyand speedily. By its speed of snow removal, the invention makes itpossible to cut down the number of machines required for snow removaland the investment in this type of work equipment is thereby greatlyreduced. For example: A snow plow which will satisfactorily clear theline of travel and move at a speed of forty miles per hour will do thesame work as eight machines of a different type which could only travelat a speed of five miles per hour.

The term air conditioning, as employed herein, includes: First, to referto the snow as being undercut in advance of the nose or leading edge ofthe scoop, and/or, second, to refer to the snow as being aerated, i. e.,impregnated with air so that it is made more porous or buoyant or brokeninto small bodies. The term elevating the snow includes raising the snowby the stream of air issuing from the ports 45 and/ or mechanicallyraising the snow by the inclined face of the scoop 35.

When the device of the invention is not mounted on a railroad carriage,it may be secured to an automobile truck with or without endless tracktread, or to a type of construction machine commonly referred to as anendless track tractor.

The air stream by the very operation of its being compressed will causeit to be a heated stream. In addition to this, I have provided that theheat of the engine exhaust may be added to the air stream to cause it tobe further expanded and therefore accelerated. In the case of theturbo-jet engine, the blast of air would be highly heated and may serveupon discharge to cause the stream of snow passing over the openings 103of Figs. 11 and 12 or openings 47 and 48, if form of Figs. 1 and 2 isadopted, to vaporize and to be blown aside as vapor by wind currents.

During periods of heavy snowfall, particularly in the mountains, snowaccumulates on the tracks or roadways at a rate in excess of the abilityof snow removal equipment of presently employed types to dispose of it.

The speed of operation of my invention, except in very extremeconditions, will be such as to permit the very close following of thesnow removing equipment by railroad trains. Thus, the speed of the snowremoving equipment will be such that the train schedules normally may bevery closely followed, and this without danger of becoming snow-bound.This is in definite contrast with the present operation of snow removingequipment where it often occurs that a train is held at a given stationuntil a sufficient trackage is supposed to be cleared for furtheroperation of the train. However, the snow removing equipment operates soslowly that the track once cleared becomes clogged again by snow beforethe train can proceed. This results in attempting to operate trains inand through snow of such depth as to greatly impede the progress of thetrain or cause it to be stalled by the snow, with resultant delay tofreight shipments or discomfort to passengers.

The method of operation of my invention disclosed herein, as well as themode of operation of the structure devised to carry out said method,reveals the explanation for the high speed snow removal involved. Thesaid method and structure are capable of putting to etficient andeffective use a far greater magnitude of horse power than is possible inany presently employed snow removal equipment. As an example of thepractical maximum horse power which can be employed effectively by mydiscovery and invention for the removal of snow from railroad tracks,the following figures are pertinent:

(1) Power in compressed air from turbo-jet engine or engine-drivencompressor may equal 5000 horse power;

(2) Power from the pusher engine, that is, moving the plow along thetrack and into the snow may equal 3000 horse power;

(3) Combined power for displacing and removing the snow may thus equal8000 horse power.

No other known snow removing equipment can efficiently and effectivelyemploy such a magnitude of power for snow removal as a unitary assembly.

By use of two such machines as described above, that is, the snow plowand pusher engine working in unison, a total of eight thousand horsepower can be applied at the point of impact of the snow plow with thesnow to be removed. This total amount of power may be efiiciently andeffectively applied in the act of removing the snow when applied inaccordance with the discovery of the method and structure of the deviceherein disclosed.

Relative mode of operation, furthermore, snow can be cleared from morethan one track simultaneously by means of this invention, that is, byusing the form of the plow with jets directed to the side as in Fig. 15,such a plow can move along the middle track of a five-track yard and,with one passage of the machine, can clear snow from the track overwhich it operates and at the same time clear'the snow from one or moretracks on either side of the track on which the machine is operating.Speed of operating the rotary plow is positively limited by reason ofthe fact that it is subject in discharging the snow to confining andrestricting the snow in channels and thereby compacts the snow on theouter shell of the plow housing due to centrifugal force as the snowmust be carried around from the lower part of the propeller periphery tothe upper part where the snow is free to be discharged from saidhousing. The amount of such load that is pressed upon the propellerblades imposes a definite limitation of the amount of horse power whicheffectively may be applied, that is, something of the order of severalhundred horse power applied at the wheel. On the other hand, in mydiscovery and invention the amount of the horse power which may beapplied effectively is practically unlimited.

Moreover, in connection with method, and mode of operation, itpreviously has been pointed out that much of the difliculty in removingsnow is due to the inherent nature of the snow. Its nature renders itsubject to being readily compacted and any procedure of confining orpressing the snow results obviously in compacting it. The fact that myinvention and discovery operates in a manner in removing the snow whichdoes not confine or press the snow into reduced channels is in directcontrast with snow removing equipment heretofore commonly used, i. e.,in my invention the area of the stream or air current cross-sectionallyconsidered is not reduced as said stream proceeds from the face of thescoop 35 or mold board 34.

In connection with the above, the feature of my invention comprisingapplying a high velocity current of air to the snow functions todisintegrate or pull apart the very crystals of the snow itself, or insome cases, break the consolidated snow into small bodies, thus reducingthe snow crystals to most minute particles or the snow into small bodieswhen compacted which are easily carried away by the current of highvelocity air provided by my invention. According to my invention, thesnow is aerated and then subjected to disintegrating forces. As thestream or current of air departs from the snow plow or face of the moldboard, the stream expands and thus the velocity gradually diminishes,particularly on the peripheral portions of the stream, but at the sametime the snow crystals or flakes have been pulled apart by the action ofthe current of air and their size is reduced to such minute bodies thatthe current of air is sufficient for their transporting. The snow as itmoves up the incline of the scoop 35 is engaged by the strong highvelocity current and then as it proceeds further and further from theface of the scoop 35 in its flight to a place laterally of the trackway,the pressure is quickly reduced and therefore there is an augmentedtendency to pull apart the snow flake or crystals as they pass from ahigh pressure area to a low pressure area.

Finally, there is a condition of snow removal which is confronted incertain states of the West where sand or dust storms develop. Inrailroad cuts, the snow may be falling at the same time that sand isbeing blown from high ground wind-exposed areas with the result that thesnow and dust or soil, in a very short time of the order of three orfour hours, may form a solid mass of a character that often requiresexplosives to be employed for its removal. The use of steam has beenemployed in the removal of such material, because the melting of thesnowby the steam breaks up the very diflicult combination of frozen snowand sand or soil and then the snow plow can operate to remove thecomposite of snow and soil or dust. The injection of the heated highvelocity air of my invention from the vents 45 in the leading edge ofthe scoop member 35 thus provides an eflicient means for the removal ofthis very serious condition of cuts filled with such combined snow andsand or soil.

I claim:

1. A device of the character described comprising a mounting carriage; amold board mounted on the advancing end of said carriage having anupwardly inclined lower scoop member and a plow member above andadjacent to said scoop member, said scoop member being open to theatmosphere frontally, upwardly, and laterally; a series of air dischargevents transversely disposed in the leading edge portion of said scoop inclose proximity to the ground surface; an opening in the upper portionof said scoop in the path of snow which is being moved over the face ofsaid scoop for discharging a high velocity air current; adjustablelouvers disposed in said opening; a high velocity air current developingmeans mounted rearwardly of said mold board; conduits connecting saidair current developing means with said vents and said opening fordischarging therethrough a high velocity air current which is of amagnitude which physically tears the snow apart.

2. A device of the character described comprising a carriage; a moldboard mounted on the advancing end of said carriage having an upwardlyinclined lower scoop member and a plow member above and adjacent to saidscoop member over which mold board snow is caused to pass; a series ofair vents transversely disposed in the leading edge portion of saidscoop through which a high velocity air current may be discharged, saidair current being characterized by being of a force which permeates thesnow in advance of the vents and makes it more porous, said snow beingpermeated in situ as it has fallen; an opening in the upper portion ofsaid scoop for discharging a high velocity air current; directionimparting means disposed'in said opening by which said high velocity aircurrent may be directed in a predetermined direction; a high velocityair current of not less than snow melting temperature developing meansmounted rear wardly of said mold board by which said high velocity aircurrents are produced; and conduits connecting said air currentdeveloping means with said vents and said opening in discharging thesnow from the mold board face in a cominuted stream, the cross sectionof which discharge stream is continually expanding as the snow leavessaid face.

3. A device of the character described comprising a carriage; a moldboard mounted on the advancing end of said carriage; air vents in theleading edge of said mold board through which vents a high velocity aircurrent is discharged into the snow in situ as i has fallen positionedin advance of said vents, said air current having a magnitude of forcewhich permeates and makes more porous the said snow; wing membersadjustably mounted on the lateral edge portion of said mold boarddetermining the width of a stream of snow to be passed over said moldboard While so permeated with air; an opening in said mold board whichopening is in spaced relation to said leading edge; directional means insaid opening imparting a predetermined direction to said stream of snow;a high velocity air current developing means mounted rearwardly of saidmold board and in communication with said vents and said opening, saidcurrent having a magnitude of force that comminutes the snow anddischarges the same to areas remote from the path of travel in adischarge stream, the cross section of which discharge stream iscontinually expanding upon being engaged by said air current; andconduits connecting said air current developing means with said ventsand said opening.

4. A device of the character described comprising a carriage; a moldboard mounted on the advancing end of said carriage having upwardlyinclined lower scoop member and a plow member above and adjacent saidscoop member which scoop member lifts snow from its position in situ asit has fallen and passes the snow over the face of said scoop member; anadjustable hood mounted above and adjacent said plow member fordeflecting said stream of snow laterally against said plow member andpreventing the snow from rising vertically above said mold board; anopening in the upper portion of said scoop member; a high velocity aircurrent developing means mounted rearwardly of said mold board, saidcurrent being of a magnitude of force which comminutes and dischargesthe snow to areas remote from the path of travel in a stream, the crosssection of which discharge stream is continually expanding upon beingengaged by said air current; and conduits connecting said air currentdeveloping means with said opening.

5. A device of the character described comprising a railroad carriage,for travel on flanged rails; an unhoused upwardly, rearwardly inclinedscoop member mounted on the advancing end of said carriage which scoopmember lifts snow from its positon in situ as it has fallen and passesthe snow over the face of said scoop member; an opening in the upperportion of said scoop member; a high velocity air current developingmeans mounted rearwardly of said scoop member, said current being of amagnitude of force which comminutes and discharges the snow to areasremote from the path of travel in a stream, the cross section of whichdischarge stream is continually expanding upon being engaged by said aircurrent; and conduits connecting said air current developing means withsaid opening and leading to points above and adjacent to the railflanges for causing said air current to discharge outwardly from saidpoints to dispose of the snow remaining on said rails laterally to areasremote from said rails in a stream, the cross section of which iscontinually expanding and for directing a portion of said stream of airto the rail flanges in freeing the same of snow.

6. In a device of the character described the combination of a carriageand mold board having an open, rearwardly, upwardly inclined scoopmember causing a stream of snow to rise and pass over said mold boardfrom its position in situ as it has fallen; a center'board pivotallymounted on said mold board; an opening in said scoop member in spacedrelation to its leading edge, said opening being variable both as todirection and as to crosssectional area; and a high velocity air currentdeveloping means mounted rearwardly of said mold board and incommunication with said opening, said current being of a magnitude offorce that the snow is cornminuted and discharged in a stream to areasremote from the path of travel as laterally directed by said centerboard, the cross section of which discharge stream is continuallyexpanding upon being engaged by said air current.

7. A device of the character described comprising a carriage; a. moldboard mounted on the advancing end of said carriage which lifts in astream snow from its position in situ as it has fallen and passes saidsnow over the unconfined face of said mold board; an opening in saidmold board in spaced relation to the leading edge; means mounted in saidmold board adjacent the leading edge and the path of travel andlaterally adjustable for discharging high velocity air current laterallyof said path of travel; a high velocity air current developing meansmounted rearwardly of said mold board, said current being of asufficicnt magnitude of force which comminutcs and discharge the snow toareas remote from the path of travel in a stream, the cross section ofwhich is continually expanding upon being engaged by said air current;and conduits connecting said air current developing means with saidopening and with said means mounted in said mold board adjacent theleading edge and the path of 16 travel for clearing the area laterallyof the path of travel of snow to prevent the building up of high banksof snow in said lateral area.

8. In a device of the character described, the combination of a carriageand mold board having an open, rearwardly, upwardly inclined scoopmember which lifts snow in a stream over said mold board from itsposition in situ as it has fallen; an opening in said scoop member inspaced relation to the leading edge thereof, said opening being variableboth as to direction and as to crosssectional area; a jet reaction meansdeveloping a high velocity air current mounted rearwardly of said moldboard and in communication with said opening, said air current being ofa temperature and magnitude of force so that the snow is cornminuted andat least in part vaporized and prepared to be carried laterally to areasremote from the path of travel in discharging the snow in a stream, thecross-section of which discharge stream is continually expanding uponbeing engaged by said air current emerging from said opening.

9. The method of snow removal from a path of travel at substantial speedcomprising the following steps in sequence, moving the discharge of ahigh velocity air current at substantial speed, said discharge emergingin a plane substantially parallel and adjacent to the ground whileengaging the lower portions of the fallen snow in the path of travel,said current entering said snow as the first stage for preparing thesame to be finally discharged laterally of the path of travel;immediately elevating the said snow in a stream at an inclined angle topath of travel; and subjecting said stream of snow to another current ofhigh velocity air characterized by being upwardly directed and of amagnitude of force which physically tears the snow apart in furtherpreparing the same for removal to areas laterally remote from the pathof travel.

10. The method of snow removal from a path of travel at substantialspeed comprising the following steps in sequence, moving the dischargeof a high velocity air current at substantial speed, said dischargeemerging in a plane substantially parallel and adjacent to the groundwhile engaging the lower portions of the fallen snow in the path oftravel, said current entering said snow as the first stage for preparingthe same to be finally discharged laterally of the path of travel;immediately elevating the said snow in a stream at an inclined angle tothe path of travel; and subjecting said stream of snow to anothercurrent of high velocity air characterized by being up wardly directedand of a magnitude of force which physically tears the snow apart infurther preparing the same for removal to areas laterally remote fromthe path of travel.

11. The method of snow removal from a path of travel at substantialspeeds comprising the following steps in se quence, moving the dischargeof a heated high velocity air current, said discharge emerging in aplane substantially parallel to and adjacent the ground in having itsdischarge engage the lower portions of the snow in undercutting the snowand aerating the same as the first step of preparing the same to befinally discharged laterally of the path of travel; immediatelyelevating the aerated snow in a stream at an inclined angle to the pathof travel; and subjecting said snow after being formed into a stream toanother current of high velocity air characterized by beingsubstantially upwardly directed and of a magnitude of force whichphysically tears the aerated snow apart in a discharging stream, thecross-section of which stream is continually expanding upon beingengaged by said air current. 7

12. The method of snow removal from a path of travel at substantialspeeds comprising the following steps in sequence; forming a stream ofsnow by cutting and scooping a channel into a layer of fallen snow;simultaneously moving the discharge of high velocity air current of notless than snow melting temperature at substantial railroadschedule-keeping speeds against said layer of fallen snow said dischargeemerging in a plane substantially parallel and adjacent to the ground inhaving its discharge engage the lower portions of the snow inundercutting the snow and aerating the same as the first step ofpreparing the snow for being finally discharged upwardly into the air;immediately elevating the aerated snow in a steam at an inclined angleto the path of travel; and subjecting said stream of snow to anothercurrent of high velocity air characterized by being substantiallyupwardly directed .and of a magnitude of force which tears the areatedsnow apart in discharging upwardly the snow away from all furthercontact with mechanical structure, said stream continually expandingupon being engaged by said air current and the movement of said snowbeing maintained throughout in a generally upward direction.

13. A device of the character described for removing snow from a path oftravel comprising a carriage; a scoop member mounted on the front ofsaid carriage and having .an open face disposed at an upward angle tothe path of travel over which face snow is caused to pass in beingelevated from its ground supported position; an opening in said scoopmember in spaced relation to its leading edge; a high velocity aircurrent developing means mounted rearwardly of said scoop member;conduits connecting said air current developing means with said opening,the said current being directed by said opening for discharging saidsnow into the open atmosphere directly upward and away from the openface of said scoop member, the snow laden discharge current continuallyfreely expanding as it rises above said face.

14. A device of the character described for removing snow from a path oftravel along a surface of travel comprising a carriage; a scoop membermounted on the front of said carriage and having an inclined face fullyopen directly to the atmosphere, over which face snow moves in a streamwhile being elevated from its surface supported position; an air currentopening in said scoop member in spaced relation to its leading edge; ahigh velocity air current developing means mounted "on said carriage; aconduit connecting said air current developing means with said aircurrent opening, said opening delivering the high velocity air currentinto engagement with said snow stream, deflecting the same above andaway from said scoop member directly into the open atmosphere.

15. The method of snow removal from a path of travel comprising moving ascoop with its face directly open to the atmosphere into snow in thepath of travel at substantial speed, causing elevation of said snow in astream over the open face of said scoop at an inclined angle to the pathof travel from its ground supported position; and discharging a highvelocity air current into accelerated, lifting, engagement with saidstream of snow while being elevated over the scoop face, suchdischarge-diverting and blasting the stream of snow While flowing oversaid scoop face directly, upwardly and away from the open face of thescoop into the open atmosphere above said scoop, the snow laden aircurrent continually freely, radially expanding as it rises anddischarges from said path of travel into the open atmospheresubstantially above the area of initial engagement of the high velocityair current with the stream of snow.

16. The method of snow removal from a path of travel comprising thefollowing steps; moving a scoop into the snow at substantial speed,causing elevation of said snow in a stream from its initial position;and discharging a high velocity air current into lifting engagement withsaid elevated stream of snow, said air current directly discharging thestream of snow upwardly and away from said scoop into the openatmosphere thereabove, said air current continually freely expandingwhile rising and being of a magnitude physically tearing the particlesof snow apart, facilitating their removal to remote areas.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS178,172 Mabbs May 30, 1876 227,011 Horton Apr. 27, 1880 281,752 ChurchJuly 24, 1883 1,153,776 Gebhart Sept. 14, 1915 1,515,553 Cummings Nov.11, 1924 1,594,709 Bubb et a1 Aug. 3, 1926 1,747,258 ONeil Feb. 18, 19302,067,575 Meyerhoefer Jan. 12, 1937 2,222,437 Lykken Nov. 19, 19402,404,287 Greer July 16, 1946 2,436,956 Du Pras Mar. 2, 1948 2,516,600Shipley et a1 July 25, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS 42,571 Denmark June 30, 193054,955 Germany Jan. 7, 1891 58,364 Norway Sept. 6, 1937

